Electric furnace.



No. 688,364. Patented Dec. l0, I90l. E. R. TAYLOR.

ELECTRIC FURNACE.

(Application filed Dec. 21, 1899. Renewed Apr. 18, 1901.) (No Mo'dal.)

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(Application fllod rm. 21, 1809. Renewed Apr. 19, 1901.

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No. 688,364. Patontad Doc. ID, I90l. E. R. TAYLOR.

ELECTRIC FURNACE.

(Applicltion filed Dec. 21, 1899. Benawed Apr. 18, 1901.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.-

EDWARD R. TAYLOR, OF PENN YAN, NEW YORK.

ELECTRIC FURNACE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 688,364, dated December10, 1901.

Application filed December 21, 1899. Renewed April 18,1901. i erial No.56,512. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, EDWARD R. TAYLOR, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, and a resident of Penn Yan, in the State of New York, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in Electric Furnaces, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to the art of reducing mineral substances andeffecting chemical reactions and conversions demanding heat by the aidof electricity, and more particularly to the apparatus used in such art.

The invention consists in certain novel features of construction andcombinations of parts in an electric furnace for use as above, ashereinafter set forth and claimed.

The leading objects of the invention are to protect the electrodesagainst excessive wear, to regulate the electric action-within thefurnace,-to provide for the use of constantcurrent electrolysis wherethis action is desirable, as well as resistance heating and the arc, toprevent the leakage of electricity with reference to securing themaximum heating or electrochemical effect of the current, to keep theelectric conductors cool, to intercept and carry back into the furnaceheat that would otherwise be lost by radiation, to avoid cooling themore highly-heated inner part of the furnace by the sudden introductionof cold material, and to insure the continuity of the operation.

Another object of the invention is the production of bisulfid of carbonon a large scale with economy.

Three sheets of drawings accompany this specification as part thereof.

Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings are sectional elevations of the improvedelectric furnace, and the former illustrates its operation. Fig. 3represents a horizontal section through one side of the furnace on theline A B, Figs.

Fig. 4 represents a horizontal section through the same side of thefurnace on the line C D, Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. 5 represents a horizontalsection on theline E F, Figs. 1 and 2. Figs. 6 and 7 are respectively avertical section anda plan view on a larger scale of one of the pipesfor feeding fragmentary conducting material to the electrodes shown inFig. 1. Figs. 8 and 9 are respectively a sectional detail and a faceView on the same scale as Figs. 6 and 7 of the closure-plate and itsappurtenances at one of said electrodes,- and Fig. 10 represents anenlargement of a portion of Fig. 8.

The broken lines G H and I J, Fig. 5, indicate the planes of section inFigs. 1 and 2, respectively. v

Like letters and numbers refer to like parts in all the figures.

The improved furnace is preferably and conveniently of an upright orstack form and of three diameters at successive heights, as shown inFigs. 1 and 2, and round in crosssection, as represented by Figs. 3, 4,and 5, with annular horizontal shoulders l and 2, connecting the base a,body I), and dome c, and it comprises an iron shell common to all and achambered refractory lining of firebrick or its equivalent extendingupward to a sufficient extent above the top of said body b, as indicatedrespectively at 3 and 4-.

The electrodes in pairs are shown at d and e and atfand g in Figs. 1 and4:. Each of them comprises a body portion 5 and a conductor-rod 6, andeach is supported Within a side opening-7 in the furnace-wall by ametallic closure-plate'h, attached to a metallic frame 2'. (CompareFigs. 8, 9, and 10.) Each closure-plate is constructed with apackinggland 8, with openings in the gland and plate large enough topermit the conductor-rods 6 to be wrapped with insulating material 9,Figs. 8 and 9, so as to be'insulated therefromagainsttheleakageofelectricity. Theinsulation 9 preferably consists ofalternate layers of mica and asbestos, and like insulation 10, Figs. 8and 10, is interposed between the shell of the furnace and said frame fand within this frame, where it is held in place by a metallic innerframe ll, Fig. 10. The inside of the furnace-shell 8 is also preferablyprovided throughout with a flexible lining 12, Figs. 8 and 10, ofasbestos or other suitable insulating material, held in contact with theshell by the refractory lining at, of fire-brick or the like, and thesame is extended within the frames 1; and secured by metallicinnerframes 13. A sheet 14, Figs. 8 and 10, ofasbestos or other suitableinsulating material, also covers the whole inside face of eachclosure-plate 7L, extending between the same and the frames '2' and 13behind it, and thus insulating the plate from said frames and separatingtherefrom any materials that may Work back to the plate from theinterior of the furnace. When the electrode and closure-plates are inplace, the sockets of the glands 8 are packed with asbestos or the likeand are then screwed tight, thus sealing the conductors against theescape around them of liquid or gaseous contents of the furnace andagainst the admission of air. Bolsters 15, Fig. 1, within the sideopenings 7, assist to support the terminals in horizontal positioninside the furnace.

In operation the electrodes preferably act with broken or scrapconducting materials, (represented atj in Fig. 1,) which may preferablybe coke or scrap carbon broken into fragments of suitable size to feedthrough pipes 7s, Figs. 1, 6, and 7, and passages Z, Figs. 1 and 3,leading from said pipes, without clogging said pipes and passages. Eachof the pipes is held upright in a curb m, Figs. 6 and 7, attached to thefurnace-shell on the shoulder 1, as in Fig. 1, and insulated therefromby a sleeve 16, Figs. 6 and 7, of asbestos or other suitable material.Said fragmentary conducting material j, Fig. 1, falling upon and overthe electrodes protects the latter from excessive wear, and byregulating and arranging the same within the furnace it may also be madeto perform the office of regulating the current of electricity suppliedto the furnace, so as to obviate moving the electrodes for this purpose.The streams of fragmentary conducting material from the several pipesmay be fed in and arranged to fall together over and between theelectrodes, so that the electricity will at the thinnest points beconverted into heat by reason of the greater resistance opposed to itspassage, or they may be regulated to so fall that a series of electricarcs shallbe produced and the electricity converted into heat in thatmanner, or they maybe regulated so that both of these conditions mayobtain, if this be deemed best for the work to be accomplished.

The shoulder 1 of the furnace is further provided with hoppers 'n, Fig.1, from which passages 0, Figs. 1 and 3, extend vertically downward tothe side openings 7 above the conductor-rods 6 of the electrodes for thepurpose of keeping said conductor-rods covered with material requiredfor or that will not interfere with the main operation that is to takeplace in the furnace and which will melt at a moderate temperature andin melting will have a tendency to keep said conductor-rods cool.

The shoulders 1 and 2 are provided, respectively,with hoppersp and q,Fig. 2, of another class, each of the former communicating with threeconcentric passages r, s, and t, Figs. 2 to 5, and said hoppersqcommunicating with a passage u, Figs. 2 to 5, that surrounds theinterior of the body I) and extends downward within the base a,concentric with said. passages r, s, and i. The object of these hoppersand passages in common is to surround the interior of the furnace withwalls of an easilyfusible material or materials, such as above describedwith reference to the hopper a and passage 0 above each side opening 7,so that the same will intercept and carry back into the interior of thefurnace the heat that has sought to escape through its sides and thatwould otherwise be lost by radiation. The discharge from said passagesa, s, i, and to into the interior of the furnace is through ducts o and10, Fig. 5, affording direct communication between each part of eachpassage at bottom and said interior.

The hoppers mp, and qarein common riveted fast upon the furnace-shell 3and provided with feed-regulating plugs 17, Figs. 1 and 2, fitted toholes in said shell that communicate with their respective passages, andsaid passages Z, 0, r, s, 15, and u in common are formed in the processof building the lining 4 or lining up the furnace with fire-brick or itsequivalent, as aforesaid. The fusible material introduced by way of saidhoppers 01, and q, passages 0, r, s, l, and 'u, and ducts o and w, is atthe same time melted or fused preparatory to its taking its part in thereactions provided for within the working chamber a, and this isaccomplished so grad ually that the inner part of the furnace where thereactions are actively in progress is not cooled by the introduction ofthe cold fusible material. In certain cases said fusible ma terial maythus be partly orwhollyvaporized before the hottest part or heat zone ofthe furnace is reached, and under these circumstances it reaches thepoint of most active chemical combination under the most favorableconditions, having at the same time derived almost or quite its entireheat from the intercepted heat that would otherwise have been lost fromthe furnace by radiation.

The infusible or less fusible material or materials may be fed inthrough an inlet :11, Fig. 1, in the upper part or dome c of thefurnace, or a suitable opening otherwise located, if preferred, into anupper chamber y, communicating at bottom with the working chamber 2, andthese materials, descending upon the fragmentary conducting materialy'or upon the electrodes d c and fg, become heated to a temperatureadapted to make them combine with said fusible material or materials fedin through the hoppers n, p, and q, as aforesaid. The infusible or lessfusible materials may also be heated by the direct action of the currentowing to the resistance they offer to its passage through the mass andmay thus be a factor in the conversion of electricity into heat in thefurnace, or they may be acted on by constant-current electrolysis, asaforesaid.

To operate the furnace, the electrodes d e andf g are properly set intheir positions and electrically connected with a dynamo or dynamos ofsufficient power. A quantity of the electrodes as may be deemeddesirable.

asst-364 more fusible material to be used in the reaction is filled inbelow and beyond the electrodes as high as may be deemed desirable, andthe passages 0, r, s, t, and u are filled with the same. A suitablesupply of the fragmentary conducting material j is next arranged, asdesired, around and upon the electrodes, and the pipes 70 are filledwith the same as far up as is deemed advisable. A supply of theinfusible or less fusible material or materials is then placed upon theconducting material j and the electrodes and the furnace wholly orpartly filled with the same, as may be desired. The current may then beturned on. As work proceeds fresh materials are added from time to time,as required, through the respective hoppers and openings provided forthat purpose, and are fed automatically toward the heat zone by gravity,thus insuring the continuity of the operation. The gases and vapors maketheir Way out of the furnace through a pipe 00, Fig. 1, which may beconnected to condensers or other suitable apparatus to utilize suchgases and vapors.

The lower part of the Working chamber .2 constitutes the ash-pit of thefurnace, which may be cleaned out through one of the side openings 7,when this becomes necessary, by

removing its closure-plate and electrode. Be-

neath the floor of the ash-pit a drainage-duct 2, covered by loosebricks, extends to one side of the furnace for draining off the liquidcontents of the ash-pit when the operation of the furnace is to besuspended long enough to make such drainage desirable.

A specific example of the usefulness of this furnace is afforded by themanufacture of bisulfid of carbon. In this case sulfur is placed inthebottom of the working chamber z of the furnace and as far up aroundthe The fragmentsj of broken carbon or coke are then thick, which wouldenable the electric ourrent to find its Way too easily through thefurnace. As the filling proceeds the pipes k are filled with thefragments j and the shaft or upper chamber y of the furnace is filledwith the charcoal. Sulfur is then or meanwhile filled into the chambersr, s, t, and u and into the passages 0 through their respective hoppers,and the electricity is applied through the electrodes at e and f g. Thealternating current is preferably employed in this reaction. The sulfurwithin the working chamber a soon becomes melted, and its level risesmore or less nearly to the top of the electrodes. Being a non-conductorof electricity, the sulfur itself thus becomes a regulater of theelectric current in a most effective manner. As it approaches the heatzone the top of the molten mass of sulfur becomes vaporized and thevapor rises through the subj acent charcoal. The charcoal in due timebecomes sufficiently heated to combine with the sulfur Vapor, with theformation of bisulfid-of-carbon (CS vapor, which ascends through thecharcoal above it, finally passing out through the pipe 00 to anysuitable condenser adapted to condense the same -to liquid. Charcoal andsulfur and the fragmentsj are fed into the furnace from time to time asrequired through the inlet 00 and through the pipes and hoppers n, p,and q, and so the operation is made continuous.

The term iron is herein used for iron or steel. The furnace may be ovalor elliptical in cross-section as the equivalent of round, and valves ofany suitable form are considered equivalents of the plugs 17.

One pair or more than two pairs of electrodes may be provided. Thepassages r, s, 25, and u may be more or less than four in number, andother like modifications will suggest themselves to those skilled in theart.

Having thus described said improvement, I claim as my invention anddesire to patent under this specificationl. An electric furnace having,in combination, a metallic shell, a working chamber within the same,means for supplying said chamber with material for treatment and fordischarging the product, electrodes opposed to each other Within saidchamber, conductors connecting said electrodes with a suitable generatorof electricity,means for sealing and insulating said conductors,downwardly-extending passages located and discharging above and uponsaid electrodes respectively, and metallic pipes, attached to andinsulated from said shell, communicating with said passages at top, andadapted for supplying the same by gravity with carbon fragments fordirecting and regulating the electric current.

2. An electric furnace having, in combination, a metallic shell, arefractory lining, a working chamber surrounded and in part overhung bysaid lining, means for supplying said chamber with material fortreatment and for discharging the product, electrodes opposed to eachother within said chamber, conductors connecting said electrodes with asuitable generator of electricity, means for sealing and insulating saidconductors, downwardly-extending passages within said lining located anddischarging above and upon said electrodes respectively, and metallicpipes, attached to and insulated from said shell, communicating withsaid passages at top, and adapted for supplying the same by gravity withcarbon fragments for directing and regulating the electric current.

3. An electric furnace having, in combination, a working chamber, meansforsupplying the same with material for treatment and for dischargingthe product, electrodes opposed to each other within said chamber,conductors connecting said electrodes with a suitable generator ofelectricity, a metallic shell having openings to admit said electrodes,metallic frames surrounding said openings and attached externally tosaid shell, metallic closure-plates attached externally to said framesand having means for sealin g said conductors, and insulation betweensaid shell and frames and between said frames and plates.

4. An electric furnace having, in combination,a working chamber, meansfor supplying the same with material for treatment and for dischargingthe product, electrodes opposed to each other within said chamber,conductors connecting said electrodes with a suitable generator ofelectricity, a metallic shell having openings to admit said electrodes,metallic frames surrounding said openings and attached externally tosaid shell, metallic closure-plates attached externally to said framesand provided with glands through which said conductors extend,insulation between said shell and frames and between said frames andplates, and insulatin g-wrappin gs forsaid conductors extending throughsaid glands.

5. An electric furnace having, in combination, suitable walls, a workingchamber surrounded and in part overhung by said walls, means forsupplying said chamber with material for treatment and for dischargingthe product, electrodes opposed to each other within said chamber andcomposed of body portions and conductor-rods, side openings in saidwalls for the admission of said electrodes, and downwardly-extendingpassages in said walls in communication with said side openings, adaptedfor the admission thereto of fusible material which in melting will coolsaid conductor-rods. t

6. An electric furnace having, in combination, suitable walls, a workingchamber surrounded and in part overhung by said walls, means forsupplying said chamber with material for treatment and for dischargingthe product, electrodes opposed to each other within said chamber andcomposed of body portions and conductor-rods, side openings in saidwalls for the admission of said electrodes, downwardly-extendingpassages in said walls in communication with said side openings, adaptedfor the admission thereto of fusible material which in melting will coolsaid c011- ductor-rods, external hoppers for the introduction of suchfusible material, and means for regulating the feed of such material.

7. An electric furnace having a working chamber, walls surrounding saidchamber, means for supplying said chamber with material for treatment,comprising downwardlyextending passages within said walls, surroundingsaid chamber and in communication therewith, whereby when filled withfusible material said passages form a non-conducting jacket for thefurnace and serve as heateconomizers, electrodes opposed to each otherwithin said chamber, conductors connecting said electrodes with asuitable generator of ceased electricity, and means for discharging theproduct of the furnace.

8. An electric furnace having a Working chamber, walls surrounding saidchamber, means for supplying said chamber with material for treatment,comprising two or more passages one within another within said walls,each extending downwardly and around said chamber, and having separatecommunication therewith, and adapted to feed material to the heat zoneof the furnace, and when filled with such material to successivelyintercept the heat radiating from said chamber and to return the same tosaid chamber, electrodes opposed to each other within said chamber,conductors connecting said electrodes with a suitable generator ofelectricity, and means for discharging the product of the furnace.

9. An electric furnace, having a working chamber, walls surrounding saidchamber, means for supplying said chamber with material for treatment,comprising two or more concentric passages within said walls, eachextending downwardly and around said chamber, and having separatecommunication therewith, and adapted to feed material to the heat zoneof the furnace, and when filled with such material to successivelyintercept the heat radiating from said chamber and to return the same tosaid chamber, electrodes opposed to each other within said chamber,conductors connecting said electrodes with asuitable generator ofelectricity, and means for discharging the product of the furnace.

10. An electric furnace comprisingbase and body portions, round incross-section, having shouldered walls, a working chamber within saidbase, means for supplying said chamber with material for treatment,including two or more concentric passages within said walls, eachextending downwardly and around said chamber, the innermost of saidpassages surrounding said body portion, means for feeding such materialinto the respective passages at top, ducts connecting the respectivepassages at bottom with said chamber, electrodes opposed to each otherwithin said chamber, conductors connecting said electrodes with asuitable generator of electricity, and means for discharging the productof the furnace.

11. An electric furnace having, in combination, shouldered walls, aworking chamber within said walls, means for supplying said chamber withmaterial. for treatment comprising downwardly-extendin g passages withinsaid walls, surrounding said chamber, shoulder-supported hoppers for theintroduction of fusible material into said passages at top, ductsbetween said passages at bottom and said chamber, electrodes opposed toeach other within said chamber, conductors connecting said electrodeswith a suitable generator of electricity, and means for discharging theproduct of the furnace.

ceases 12. An electric furnace comprising base and body" portions havingshouldered walls, a working chamber within said base, means forsupplying said working chamber with materials for treatment including anupper chamber within said body portion and passages within said Wallsextending downwardly and around said Working chamber, means for feedingsuch materials into said upper chamber and into said passages at top,ducts connecting said passages at bottom with said working chamber,electrodes opposed to each other within said working chamber,cond uctorsconnecting said electrodes with a suitable generator of electricity, andmeans for discharging the product of the furnace.

13. An electric furnace comprising base and body walls and a dome, aworking chamber and ash-pit within said base-walls, a charcoalchamberWithin said body-Walls in communication with said Working chamber,downwardly-extendingsulfur-passages within said walls, means forintroducing the respective materials into said charcoal-chamber and intosaid sulfur-passages at top, ducts connecting said passages at bot-tomwith said working chamber, electrodes opposed to each other Within saidworking chamber,conductors connecting said electrodes with a suitablegenerator of electricity, and suitable pipe connec tions, leading fromsaid dome, whereby the gaseous products may be removed and collected.

14:. An electric furnace having, in combination, a working chamber,means for supplying the same with material for treatment and fordischarging the product, electrodes opposed to each other within saidchamber, conductors connecting said electrodes with a suitable generatorof electricity, a metallic shell, a flexible lining of insulatingmaterial, and a refractory lining, within said insulating-Hm ing,serving to hold said insulating-lining in contact with the inside ofsaid shell, and forming the walls of said working chamber.

15. An electric furnace having, in combination, a working chamber, meansfor supplying the same with material for treatment and for dischargingthe product, electrodes opposed to each other within said chamber, conductors connecting said electrodes with a suitable generator ofelectricity, a metallic shell having openings to admit said electrodes,metallic frames surrounding said openings and attached externally tosaid shell, an insulating-lining of said shell extended within saidframes, metallic inner frames holding the edges of said lining in placewithin the frames first named, metallic closure-plates attachedexternally to said frames first named, and insulation between said shelland first-named frames and between the latter and said plates,substantially as hereinbefore specified.

EDlVARD R. TAYLOR.

Witnesses:

M. F. HOBART, O. M. HOBART.

